As we look to the future, the need to maximize the impact of AWE's work remains a priority. Since 2016, our Train-the-Trainer (TTT) program has equipped women with the skills to teach our Artistri Sud Social Entrepreneurship Program (ASSET) to fellow community members. While this initiative has made significant strides in enhancing the capabilities of graduates, we recognize the opportunity to exponentially scale our impact!
In partnership with the Community Rural Development Team (CRDT), we will pilot a new and improved TTT program for 50 women farmers in Cambodia. Raising awareness about our transformed TTT approach is crucial to gaining funding to reach more women in need.
Understanding the Current Landscape
The TTT program has successfully operated for five years, cultivating a dedicated group of graduates capable of planning and delivering the ASSET program within their communities! However, opportunities to independently replicate the effective entrepreneurship and leadership program have been rare. Graduates have struggled to raise funding and other foundational elements in order to deliver full programs autonomously, limiting the scale of impact.
Because this flagship program has been so successful in achieving key outcomes related to revenue generation and women’s empowerment, finding ways to expand its reach is a priority.
What if we re-envisioned the entire ASSET program as a comprehensive Train-the-Trainer initiative?
By merging entrepreneurship education with leadership and facilitation skills, we can empower participants to not only learn the content they need to grow their enterprises and incomes, but also to become effective trainers themselves, and disseminate their experience and knowledge to others in need.
The Dual-Purpose Program Structure
The reimagined ASSET program will maintain its essence as a 7-day intensive retreat, focusing on vital subjects such as accounting, bookkeeping, and sales. Raising awareness about women’s rights is also key to empowering women to step into their roles as leaders of their enterprises, their households and their communities. However, in line with the new TTT model, each module will also integrate facilitation skills.
This dual-purpose structure will enable participants to graduate with the ability to teach others, spreading the knowledge within their communities. Peer-to-peer learning also ensures that knowledge is sustainable and replicable. Upon completion, graduates will deliver relevant modules to community workshops, reaching women who otherwise would not have had access to this critical content.
Our TTT program will support 50 women farmers in the Kratie province to build businesses, increase revenue, and improve living conditions.
Why is Cambodia an Exceptional Fit?
Approximately 70% of the population of Kratie relies on agriculture.
Cambodian women are motivated to improve annual revenue streams to support their families through income generation; many are already involved in small-scale farming but often face challenges with scaling business operations.
CRDT is a grassroots organization that helps local communities form Community-Based Organizations (CBOs).
CBOs act as a source of mutual support, providing resources and guidance to help members—particularly women—improve their livelihoods.
As community leaders, the women who participate in our training commit to further training 10 members of their community-based organizations (CBOs)
With this built-in community network, we can increase our impact 10-fold, going from 50 to 500 women!
Accessing our Level of Impact and Benefits
Women
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Community
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Global
Data shows that when women gain financial autonomy, they spend their money on education and nutrition for their children. Outside the family unit, women affect change by spreading their positive impact and knowledge within local communities. At the final level, encouraging sustainable modes of agriculture contributes to environmental change globally.
Women are crucial participants in biodiversity and nutrition. Focusing on sustainable forms of farming, such as regenerative agriculture, results in greater overall health for the environment. Globally, women are pioneers of biodiversity through their cultivation of crop resilience.
This innovative TTT approach promises several benefits:
Increased Accessibility: Community-based workshops will make learning opportunities more accessible for women who cannot participate in a 7-day retreat.
Empowerment Through Knowledge: More women will gain access to essential skills relevant to their farms and businesses, fostering a stronger network of empowered individuals.
Pre-existing Networks: By training women leaders within CBOs, we ensure sustainable support systems that enhance community resilience and cooperation.
Conclusion
Reimagining our ASSET program as a dual-purpose Train-the-Trainer initiative maximizes our impact! Cambodia presents an exciting opportunity to pilot this new program, expanding the scale of our training and encouraging women’s leadership within community organizations.
As we embark on this journey, we invite our community of supporters to join us in making this vision a reality. Together, we can foster an environment where women thrive, contribute, and lead within their communities!
Stay tuned for updates on our pilot program as we strive to empower women and create lasting change!
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